Yishi Suffragium
Yishi Suffragium is the spiritual name for the voting process of the Empire, the ceremony in which each of the Noble Houses casts their vote for who they believe should become Emperox during a year of Ascension. Even when it is not currently an election year this ceremony is still traditionally performed by the Noble Houses with each casting their vote for the current Emperox. This reaffirmation of loyalty and spiritual encouragement is important to maintaining imperial relations. Often, when it is not an election year, the Noble Houses will send a representative of their House rather than the leader themselves. Competing to be sent as a representative for the Yishi Suffragium is common among ambitious young nobles looking to rise in prominence and power. The Crepido Chamber Deep in the bowels of The Grand Temple, under the main spire, there is a room whose sole purpose is to see the voting of the new Emperox called the Crepido. It is traditionally considered to be directly below the spot where the first colony ship landed on Andophael. The entrance is barred and guarded at all times to preserve the eternal unerring silence that is the chamber's hallmark. The Crepido itself is a simple circular room, approximately sixty feet wide and 30 feet high at its midpoint, slightly domed and with the floor slightly sloping towards the middle. Lining the walls are large banners, one for each house. In front of the banners are small tables, decorated with various artifacts and important religious relics from each House. House Triangulum - The Navigation Display of the Triangulum Colony Ship - The Last Remaining Bonsai Tree from Lovelace - A Piece of a Pre-Scream Terraformer House Pyxis - A pair of dice made of pyrite - A miniature telescope - A crew manifest from the jump that discovered Lodestone - A sealed box - And the first Lodestone Compass House Aquila - Gemmed circlet worn by Emperox Diomikato - Copy of the Imperial Decree giving the planet of Diomikato to House Aquila - Pieces of the first regimental banner flown over Imperial Prime - Shrapnel believed to be taken from Arhat Mars’ body - A steel ring, bearing an elaborate eagle design, unknown origins but dates to the colonial era - An alien skull, unknown species, said to be from the first alien species conquered - Original copy of the Peace Accords signed after the Second Imperial civil war House Eridanus - One of the original keys to the first Vault in Tiberium, Tiber. - First physical Imperial Credit House Eridanus minted House Reticulum - Arhat Nimfydd’s Shotgun The emblematic shotgun of the Venatorial Order of Nimfydd, removed from its resting place at the Andophael Chapterhouse. The distinctive smooth barrel is twisted, scarred, and crushed, the stock notched with a log of Arhat Nimfydd’s victories and the clawing of battle. A half ejected shell is locked in the jammed mechanism. The weapon, although of superior Reticulum make, was rendered inert in Arhat Nimfydd’s final hunt. Despite being coated in the monstrosity’s viscera and crushed in its horrible claws, the shotgun managed one final shot to secure The killing blow. Her weapon died alongside her. - Nightmarcher Skull A carved nightmarcher skull. Said to be the spoils of the very first hunt held by Reticulum on their newly terraformed homeworld, intricate carvings along this skull tell the story of a warrior people arriving at a desolate world and transforming it into a paradise where they could live and hunt as they pleased. - First Astradhari’s Fingerbone A finger bone of the first Astradhari. Locked within a plain reliquary of blue wood, this small bone holds incredible significance to Reticulum and the people of Aomori. Though its authenticity has never been proven, members of the House treat this artifact with holy reverence. - Mag Bullet A single mag bullet. Small and unassuming though it is, members of House Reticulum claim it to be the very first prototype in a line of ammunition created for the War For Human Prosperity. According to legend, this bullet is directly tied to the creation of House Reticulum. Some accounts claim that it was the first creation of the House, while others claim that its creation inspired the creation of the House. Unfounded or not, these legends hold an important place in Reticulum culture. House Crux - The Tome of Law Technically a datapad, the Tome of Law is believed to be one of the earliest books of law in Acheron Rho, dating back to before the Scream. While some data is corrupted, references to “the Constellation Ship,” and “Crux’s noble responsibility to the mission,” can still be found in pieces. - The Record of Officer Charlie An ancient, physical relic, alleged to have come with the Crux Constellation Ship from distant worlds, perhaps even Terra. While difficult to read in its current state, even with the advanced preservation technology built into its pretech containment box, the several dozen yellowed pages clearly bear the name of “Charlie,” a powerful and judicious law enforcement officer responsible for imposing fines on illegally parked spaceships. House Crux originally modeled some portion of their own parking enforcement system on the genius scrawlings of “Charlie,” and has repeatedly made attempts to inform Fornax of the brilliant space-saving method of “parallel parking.” - Constitutional Law Another physical relic, Constitutional Law is the barely readable title printed on the cover of an ancient book, more than half the pages missing or distorted with age and damage. While it was likely the pinnacle of literature within its field at the time of its publishing, the tome is an excellent example of how far law has come under House Crux over the past thousand or more years. Historical records suggest other copies were in Crux’s possession before the Scream, but were destroyed some time during the reign of the Firekeeper. - The Stone While the strange, ancient script carved into this chunk of stone is unreadable, accompanying data and records suggest it to be a remnant of a much larger edifice of law belonging to a people known as the Louvres. It has been suggested the Louvres stole the stone from another people, perhaps destroying the rest of it in some great war. A plaque of ancient metal beside the stone reads, in an archaic branch of one of Cygnus’ languages, about the scaling punishment between freepeople and those below them. It is thought this plaque describes the nature of the punishments carved into the stone itself. - Phann, The Hammer A legendary jewelers hammer referred to as a great instrument of justice, Phann will produce different musical notes when struck against different materials. When struck against steel, Phann will produce a solid base note, and when struck against books a quiet rustling sound. Phann is believed to be a part of a larger Hammer which could be used to strike the enemies of House Crux, but no evidence of the larger hammer has ever been found. A curious property of Phann is what happens when used to strike a human- Richters swear that Phann will sing differently when used to hit someone who is guilty of a crime versus something who is innocent, though this 'evidence' is inadmissible in court. House Lyra - An assortment of writings of the original crew of the constellation ship Lyre. House Serpens - The Grand Sophist's Shawl Draped over the table is a cloth, light and near translucent. This is the shawl worn by the Grand Sophist in her time as founder of the Academy, and an item of clothing that she became recognised by during her time as the Dean of the Academy. - An Echo of the Legacy Near the back of the table sits an incomplete and tattered journal written by a pre-scream Legacy, recovered after the chaos of the Scream. Pages are missing, but those that remain contain day-to-day musings of the legendary figure prior to their shattering and reformation as the current Living Legacy. - Promises to the All-seeing Eye Next to the journal sits a funerary book, dedicated to the first Imperial advisor, the Seer of the All-seeing Eye. Never opened, this book contains all the dedications of the Seer's loved ones to continue their legacy after their death. - A Shard of the Heart Between the two books sits a small, ornate vase, made from the deep red clay of the Crater of Jun'ii, a site rumoured to have beneficial effects on the psions of Hroa (and unbeknownst to them, the central point of entry for the serpent that slumbers beneath). Within sits a small capsule that emits a light layer of smoke over the table itself, replicating the constant fog of Hroa that all Serpens hold dear to their heart. - Oracular Focus At the front lay two final objects. The first is a thin strip of cloth laid out diagonally across the front of the display, made of a finely crafted material with frayed edges on one side, clearly torn from a larger garment. The soft silk was the fabric used by the first officially titled Oracle to cover their eyes during meditation. - Symbol of the Devoted Atop the blindfold sits a well worn pin, three eyes sit vertically on its surface. A Practitioner's pin, worn and bonded to the most noteworthy of the Emperox's healers. Their deeds, while perhaps not well known, ensured the longevity and comfort of their Emperox in a considerably more crucial moment than any of their predecessor's had to contend with. House Fornax - Data Drive holding incomplete blueprints of a pre scream spike drive well beyond fornax capacities. - Data Drive holding an augur scan of a planet we assume from a far away planet we believe was picked up on the colony ships going to the empire. - Silverware from the first senate gala on Maja. - A pretech multi tool that changes shape as needed used by Fabros Aeternus himself in the construction of the Ambolt shipyard, possibly of alien origin. - A fragment of the first spike drive to successfully make the jump from Maja and return after the Scream. The Ceremony When the election is called for, the High Exarch formally invites the representatives for each house and their candidate for election via a handwritten and hand-delivered letter. The letter initiates a binding contract between the House, the High Church, and God themselves. The representatives are summoned and are taken, alone, down to the Crepido. Upon arrival, they are told that the must not speak and should refrain from making unnecessary noise by the monks who tend the chamber. The representatives gather around the High Exarch, who silently blesses both them and the gathering itself, and begins the voting process. The High Exarch, slowly rotating around the room, points at each House. The indicated person either remains stationary, to indicate that they wish to vote for themselves, or walks and stands behind the House they wish to support for Emperox. The order in which the candidates are called is determined ahead of time, based on the perceived power of each House, from weakest to strongest. This is to prevent powerful Houses from intimidating weaker Houses into voting for them during the vote itself. The precise order is contentious, and as the order is written in the letter, several negotiations take place between the various representatives and the High Church. Should the first round of voting not provide a result, the representatives are blessed and exit the chamber. They are taken upstairs and are sequestered in a large wing of the main spire. They are not cut off from the rest of the Sector per se, but they are generally expected to remain in a spirit of contemplation and prayer, asking the Divine for guidance. During this time, the bells of the Sector's cathedrals and churches wrap velvet around the clappers, muting their tones to indicate to the sector that their Messiah is not yet chosen. After a further thirty days of what is in theory private contemplation and spiritual reflection but is usually simply more political wrangling, the representatives are once more escorted down to the Crepido and the ceremony largely repeats itself. The key difference is that the Houses with the most votes have their supporters start around them, though only as the ceremony begins. After the start, the representatives are free to vote for other candidates by standing behind them, or indicate their abstention by standing alone. If a House is elected, the assembled representatives ritualistically gather behind the victor, symbolizing the unity of the Empire. The High Exarch is first to break the silence, the only permitted speech in Crepido: Category:Imperial Election Category:The High Church of Messiah-as-Emperox